Then it begins to smoke
by ScaryAry
Summary: After being taking by H.Y.D.R.A. Anna Barton is subjected to extreme horrors. How will the rest of Avengers and Peter cope with this missing friend? SEQUEL TO "IT STARTS WITH A SPARK"
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1  
Peter's Point of View  
My head was throbbing, like my head was going to explode it hurt so bad.  
My mind was slow. What was I doing here?  
"Peter. You're awake." Someone said, above me. The voice was male, familiar. I open my eyes, even though it takes an extreme effort. It's Bruce Banner, looking down at me with a tight face.  
Then I remember. Anna. The gunshots. Anna. Getting hit in the back of the head. Anna.  
I bolt upright, only to have Bruce leap in front of me.  
"Peter- "  
"Where is she?" I ask, please let it be good news. Please. Please  
"Peter," Bruce says, his tone careful cautious. Like he has bad news to deliver.  
"She's gone isn't she? H.Y.D.R.A. or Doom?" I ask. Bruce sighs, rubbing his eyes as he looks at the ground.  
"We don't know." Bruce says, She's gone. Anna is gone. There's a hollow feeling in my chest. An emptiness. A dull ache. Anna is gone. Is she alive? Is she dead? Which is worse? Which one do I hope for?  
"Peter, we think it's best for you too- "Bruce starts, but I run out of the room before he can finish talking. She can't be gone. She isn't gone. This is a joke. A sick joke. She's behind it. It's a test. To see how much, I love her. That's what this has to be. Right? Please let it be a joke. A trick. Please don't be gone.  
Then as I walk around the Tower as if I'll run into her; I find Clint.  
His eyes are red, and he looks broken.  
That's when it hits me.  
She really is gone.  
Taken.  
Killed?  
Tortured?  
That's when I cry.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2  
Anna's Point of View  
MY body is on fire. Not literally, but that's what it feels like. Like my insides are being fried, extra crispy style. For a minute the pain is overwhelming. It's all I can feel. All I can think of. Pain, everywhere. Then. Nothing.  
I use the (I assume temporary) freedom from the flames to try and figure out what has happened. What do I remember? Forgetting my phone in my locker. Peter frowning at me, I run back to grab it. As I'm leaving. BLAM! Someone shoots me, more shots. Then Peter yelling my name. Then nothing but pain.  
My mind is instantly filled with questions. Where is Peter? Is he okay? Where am I? Am I okay? I peel open my eyes, and all I can see is white.  
I blink a few times trying to let my eyes adjust, but everything in the room is white. Am I supposed to be in Heaven? Wait, am I dead? I don't feel dead. But who am I judge what death feels like?  
"Hello Ms. Barton. Pleasure to see you are finally awake." Says a voice behind me. The voice is female, and sophisticated, elegant. This is the voice of a leader. Then I realize. I'm not in S.H.E.I.L.D.  
"Where am I?" I demand as I struggle to sit up, my eyes scan the room for the woman. She's young actually, younger than I would have thought by her voice. She's shorter too, and very blonde. She laughs, and it sounds a bit like bells. It's a toxic laugh.  
"You, are where you belong, Ms. Barton, we have long awaited your arrival. I am so glad you are here with us." She says, as she walks up to me  
"Look Tinkerbell," I spit "I don't know who the hell you think you are, or where the hell I am; but I'll tell you this, my family is coming for me. When they do, you're gonna wish you were Tinkerbell." I say, but Tink just smiles, and laughs.  
"Your family? You mean your incompetent idiot of a brother? Your ape of a boyfriend, Peter Parker? What about your long-lost brother, Barney Barton? The one who abandoned you and Clint to the Sword-Master? That family? They won't find you, and even if they did could they really stop me?" she laughs. "Besides," she purrs as she leans in close "I'm your mother."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3  
"What?" I yell as I jump up, nearly knocking over the small hospital bed I was laying on. "My mother is de- "  
"No, I wanted you to think I was dead, I thought I could- "she stops herself shaking her head. "All that matters now, Anna is that you're home. With your mother. Isn't that enough?" she asks. She can't be my mother. It's not possible. My mother, Edith Barton died when I was five. It's impossible for her to have survived. They were blown up! KABOOM! I've seen the pictures of the site. There was nothing left.  
"No. It's not. Because if you are my mother, which you aren't. Then why would you leave your children? Why did you abandon us? If you are my mother, well then that's just one more reason for me to hate you." She looks a bit sad, no disappointed.  
"Clint was once my good little boy. My little solider son, but I see he was more like his father in the way he raised you. Well we're just going to have to go about this the hard way." She says as she gestures to someone behind me. I whirl around only to be caught in the arms of a masked guard, who takes me over to the table, (which I hadn't noticed before) and ties me down. I try to fight it, I do. I try so hard. But in the end, I'm tired and also recovering from gunshot wounds. Or maybe the guard is just stronger. Either way, in the end he wins.  
Peter's Point of View  
I can't seem to think. My brain is incapable of performing and logical trains of thought. The only thing on my mind is Anna. Is she okay? That one question racing around in my mind again and again.  
Will I be okay? Am I okay? I don't know.  
Clint won't speak to me. I've cried so much within the last few hours, that I don't think I have any water left in my body.  
My head hurts, apparently I wasn't knocked out; but rather shot in the head. Thanks to my Spider-Man abilities, well they're the only reason I'm still alive. The fact that they shot me, scares me. If they used such great force on me, a seemingly innocent bystander, what would they do to Anna?  
At first, I wasn't sure what to do. What does one do, when one's girlfriend has been kidnapped by god knows who? I have no idea. Nobody will say anything to me. I just get sympathizing looks. Brenda's gone. Steve looks pissed, Bruce is hiding Tony is trying to find some way to trace her. I guess that's how I find myself on Harry's door. I need something old, and familiar. Someone who can understand.  
I don't even realize I'm here, until I'm ringing the ornate doorbell, then I hear it, the Star Wars theme song, blaring across the lawns. I can't help but smile, Harry and I had changed the doorbell when we were ten, his dad had been so mad, but he'd never changed it back. I guess Harry hadn't either.  
"Can I, Peter?" he asks, as he opens the door. He looks older, I guess. It's been a year. Or longer? I don't know.  
"Hey, Harry, I- "  
"Come in. Please come in Peter, we've got so much to talk about." He says,  
The house is just as I remember it, extremely over-the-top. The couch that we used to sleep on when Norman was on business trips, is still there, the statue we always bumped into on accident, still had that ugly crack from when I threw a football into gestures for me to sit down, and I do.  
Now that I'm here I'm not sure what to say. So much time has passed between the two of us. So much has changed. Plus, we didn't leave on the best terms.  
"So, you're still Spider-Man?" Harry asks, I forgot how to the point he could be.  
"Yeah, I am." I say, Harry nods  
"I'm sorry, before, when my dad, I just wasn't in the right place. What I asked you to do was wrong." He says,  
"I'm sorry too, I left you behind to deal with all of that on your own. Not exactly best-friend of the year award material." I say.  
"I'm guessing you came over for more than just some forgiveness though. Something else is bothering you. Are you and MJ- "  
"MJ and I aren't a thing anymore. Haven't been one in a while. But you're right, I came for something else. To be honest I don't really know why I came here."  
"Is something wrong?" he asks; I laugh at that. Is something wrong? What isn't wrong?  
"So much, is happening right Harry. So much, and I have no idea what to do with any of it."  
"Well, tell me." He says simply.  
"I met this girl," I start, Harry laughs  
"Peter Parker: the lady wooer." He teases, I laugh  
"It wasn't like that though. This girl, she was so crazy. And tough. And a bit weird, not to mention intimidating; and god she's beautiful. Like seriously, wow." Harry chuckles at this, "She's so, different Harry. She's amazing."  
"Well you should invite her over, I have to give her the "best-friend stamp of approval and all" that's when my smile fades  
"She can't." I whisper  
"Why not? Are you- "  
"They took her, Harry. I don't know who, but they took her. What if I can't get her back? What am I supposed to do?' I ask, more to myself than to him.  
"Tell me everything you can, maybe I can pour some Oscorp resources into it, see if I can- "  
"I have Tony Stark." I say, Harry looks at me,  
"You have Tony Stark?" I nod  
"Dude, that guy is a LEGEND. How did you meet- oh wait never mind?" He says, as he focuses on the task at hand.  
"So, this girl," he pauses I haven't told him her name yet. "Anna," "So, Anna was taken how long ago?" he asks, "A day." I say. I hardly believe it's been a day. I haven't seen her in a day. Harry nods "Okay, do you have any idea who could have taken her? Any enemies of yours?" he asks,  
"That's the thing, I think that it might be one of her enemies."  
"Your girlfriend has enemies, what is she Red Hood?" he asks, rolling his eyes. Then they widen "Holy- your girlfriend is Red Hood!" he exclaims. "Way to go Peter!" he says as he claps me on the back. God I missed having a best friend.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4  
Anna's Point of View  
I am on fire. This time for real. My body is literally covered in red-orange flames. I'm on fire, but I'm not. Then SNAP! I lose focus, the flames are gone. I am cold, and broken again.  
"Excellent job, Anna. A mother couldn't be more proud of her daughter." Purrs the Madam. Or at least that's what she calls herself. I'm supposed to call her, Mother. I'm still calling her Tinkerbell.  
"Whatever." I say, as the guards heave me off the ground.  
It's been two days since I was taken. Already, they've done tests and experiments. Tink says I'm supposed to be part of her Elite. Like Veronica was. So she's given me powers; basically I'm a Human Torch knockoff. Great present mom. At least she hasn't brainwashed me, yet. She still thinks she can win me over. Make me her perfect, super-villain daughter. I have to protect my head at all costs. So many secrets. Peter. Clint. Brenda. All those people would be put at risk if I fail. I can't fail, I won't let my family down.  
"So, Anna dear, how are we feeling. Do we like the powers? Do you want different ones?" she asks; she's trying to bribe me? Seriously? Does she not know who I am? Wait. What if she does?  
"They're fine. I'm want to go home." I say. At this she frowns.  
"You _are_ home. I am your home now. It appears that you are incapable of seeing that, so fine. I'll just have to take my role as your mother seriously. Would you boys be dears and escort my daughter to her room. She needs some time to think things over." She says, as she glares at me.  
The guards aren't as rough this time; but they drag me away, kicking and screaming anyways.  
Peter's Point of View  
'Peter! I got something!" Harry yells, his outburst jostling me out of the restless sleep I was in.  
"What?" I groan as I roll off the couch.  
"I found something. The people who took Anna, they came by Oscorp. A while ago. I didn't think anything of it at the time, after everyone found out about my dad, well we attracted a lot of crazies. This lady, she called herself "Edith Barton"- "  
"Barton is Anna's last name." I say, Harry nods "Anyways, this Edith lady wanted to find a way to give people powers. Like with the Human Torch, that sort of stuff. Said she knew people who were worthy. I brushed her off, said Oscorp wasn't into genetics anymore. But, that coupled with the fact that shew as at you high-school dragging Anna off- "  
"Dragging Anna off? Wait you found footage?" I ask, Harry's face darkens for a second. "Yeah I hacked into the school's security system, but Peter- "  
"Let me see it." I demand, Harry sighs and shakes his head but pulls it up anyways. It's Anna roaming the halls of our school, and then a petite blonde woman comes up behind her, shooting her twice in the shoulders, the rest of the shots are merely aimed at the cameras. The image of Anna laying on the ground, blood rushing out of her it's one I cannot easily push away.  
"So do we have an id on this lady? Her real name? Anything."  
"Well the name she told me, was Edith Barton. I ran a search for that name, and pulled up Anna's mom, and dad. They did like almost twelve years ago Peter. Or at least that's what we're supposed to believe. While they never actually found the Barton's bodies, they simply assumed that the Barton's who were in the hotel had perished given that were only a handful of survivors. But if it is Anna's mother why would she kidnap her? What does she have to do with H.Y.D.R.A.?" I just shrug. What exactly is there to say? I've asked myself every question imaginable, every variable I've analyzed. I haven't come up with anything.  
I decide to call into the Avengers, see if anyone has any information, anything.  
"Peter? Are you okay?" asks Bruce immediately after he picks up the phone.  
"Yeah, I was at a friend's house. I needed a fresh pair of eyes." I say  
"Well we've got one, Brenda's."  
"What?"  
"Brenda left. Apparently she was taken by H.Y.D.R.A. as well. Steve's as I'm sure you can guess beside himself. Clint is so emotional it's scary, Natasha is nowhere to be found. She's in an off-the-books mission, her cover is a matter of global security, so we can't exactly talk to her."  
"Well. I have something."  
"Great, I'll gather the gang. This should be fun."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5  
Peter's Point of View  
"Wow. This place is like, our dreams as kids. Man! You get to come here all the time?" Harry asks as we walk into the Avengers Tower. I can't help but laugh  
"No, I don't. I actually was never in here until, Anna and I started dating. Didn't know it was real before even." I say, thinking about the first trip here. That was the day we had gotten into our first ever, kind of fight. The day I found out Brenda was my sister.  
"Right. Does it bug you, her being all above you and all?" he teases. You know I don't miss Harry as much now, I didn't remember all the smart-ass comments all the time.  
"Well, you always said to go for the ones out of our league." I say, Harry laughs. That used to be his motto way back when, it was his fall back reason as to why he never had a girlfriend.  
"Yeah those were- "  
"Friend of yours Peter?" Tony from behind Harry. Tony doesn't look so good, in fact Clint and Steve don't look so good either. All three of them are bedraggled and unshaven. Tony looks like he hasn't slept in a week and Clint's eyes are red and his face puffy. I suppose though, that Anna is a bit like his daughter, given that he raised her and all. Steve looks bruised and angry. Great.  
"yeah, Tony Clint Steve this is my friend Harry. Harry, these are the guys." I introduce them hastily.  
"So while we were all searching for Brenda and Anna you have been off having a great romance of a time?" Tony demands, ignoring Harry's outstretched hand.  
"Excuse me? I was actually furthering the investigation along! We found something!" I yell, as Clint looms in my face,  
"Good since it's your fault Anna was taken in the first place." Clint spits out, I don't mean to, but I snap then.  
I lunge for Clint, tackling him to the floor. We're throwing punches wildly, kicking and swearing the entire time.  
How dare he! Blame this on me! I knew it was my fault! Did he think I didn't realize that I should have stopped Anna? Doesn't think that I don't know?  
"EVERYBODY CALM DOWN!" Bruce yells, as he walks into the room. He pulls me off of Clint, and helps Clint up.  
"This is not what Anna," he looks to me and Clint "or Brenda," he looks at Steve "would have wanted. Peter you said you and Harry found something, would you care to share it with the rest of us?" Bruce asks.  
Despite feeling my lip swell up, from a rather hard punch by Clint I share everything that Harry and I have found so far, including the bit about Anna's mom.  
"That's crazy! There's no way my mom is still alive! Besides she looks way too young to be my mother." Clint says. But I can't shake the feeling that it's her.  
"But no update on where they have the girls or anything?" Bruce asks, funnily enough he's the only one who is calm. I shake my head  
"Well we just have to believe that those girls can pull through whatever hell they're being put through right now." Bruce says as he gets up. Great.  
Anna's Point of View  
It's been hours since my mother, if that's who she really is; locked me in my room. Despite being a complete nutso bitch, she does have a nice taste. Or maybe she creeped on my room.  
The room is actually a cell, but its decorated nicely enough with two twin size beds in the room, along with a dresser and several cd players. The only cds are of bands that I like, and the room is decorated in posters similar to the ones I had in the house, even in my old room at S.H.E.I.L.D.  
I try to relax, to gather my wits and myself. But it's hard. I'm worrying about a lot of things. Too be fair I have a list of things to worry about.  
Peter okay?  
the "Madam" really my mother?  
3.I have powers now? (Clint's going to be so pissed)  
is everyone? Why haven't they found me yet?  
That's actually the entire list, but still I'm pretty sure that it's a fair list given that I haven't seen a familiar face in a week. That is until the door is thrown open by one Mary-Jane Watson, who shoves a certain blonde-haired Parker into my room.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6  
Anna's Point of View  
"Brenda? What are you doing here?" I ask as Mary-Jane leaves to lock the door to our cell "room" thing.  
"Well I sort of got taken by H.Y.D.R.A. on purpose." She says, the ways she says it, looking down at her feet makes me think of Peter.  
"You idiot! I'm so glad you're okay," I say as I pull her in for a hug.  
"How's Peter? Is he okay? And Clint?" I ask,  
"Peter, he was shot. I- I don't know Anna, I'm sorry." She said something about Clint but I didn't hear it.  
Peter was shot? She didn't know if he was okay. MY heart seemed to thunder in my ears. _Peter._  
"Anna? Are you okay?" asked Brenda,  
"I'm, I'm." then I couldn't help myself, I burst into tears. Brenda held me as I cried, until that is my dear mother decided to pay a visit.  
"Anna dear, are you all right? Let Mummy comfort you, shall I brush your hair. I used to do that when you were little."  
"I don't care!" I scream, this woman, this crazy ass bitch is the one that took me from my family, the one who could have kill- no I won't think about that. "I don't care about you! Or whatever new lies you want to tell! You are not my mother! She's dead! I never had a mother!" I yell, I'm still sobbing, uncontrollably now. That's when it happens. I don't mean to, but I burst into flames.  
Brenda, freaks out, but to be fair I can't really blame her. The Madam on the other hand, well she's just pleased.  
"So glad to see you using your gifts Anna dear." She says before she swishes out of the room, locking me up once again.  
Peter's Point of View  
At first, it didn't seem real. Bu there is was, that small red dot beeping, letting us know that Brenda was still alive.  
She's taken a communicator with her, and she managed to turn it on. Brenda is safe. Is alive. But what about Anna.  
"Okay team this is what's going to- "Steve started turning to us, when  
"Were you seriously not going to let me come with?" demands one Natasha Romanoff, who is very angry and also blonde?  
"Nat- "Clint says, before he pulls her into a hug. It makes me miss Anna even more.  
"So, let's go get this bitch." She says and with that we launch off ready to bring them home.  
Please be okay Anna.  
Anna's Point of View  
"What are you making?" I demand as I peer over Brenda's shoulder.  
"I made you a suit, well at least I tried. Um, its red. And it should fit." She says nervously. I can't help it, but despite everything I smile.  
"Well, you do look like a Phoenix. And the Suit adjusts to your body temp during the transformation into the flames that they gave you." She tells me. She just smiled as if we were actually getting out of here.  
"The name Americana suits you too. You look like a female version of Steve, but much cuter." I say and for a moment we laugh. Like there's a possibility of us actually getting out of here. Like we might actually make it.  
Then we heard it, I would say that there was about two very loud BANGS and then a very nice, resounding BOOM! With that, the cell wall fell down around us. Despite the situation I couldn't help but smile, Michael Clifford's hair was on fire again.  
Steve came through first, engulfing Brenda in a hug,  
"Don't ever do that again." He said before he was knocked over by an invisible force. Sue? No, Mary-Jane.  
In the midst of a battle, (with my newfound abilities coming into play) I hadn't noticed what was going on. Until I heard the gunshots. There was a scream, a girl's scream. Nat's scream.  
I managed to reach her before she hit the floor.  
"No! Nat!" I scream, but it's pointless, Bruce has de-transformed and is pulling her away from me. Taking her away. She looks so pale. Like a ghost, dressed in black, capped in red.  
Will she be okay?  
Suddenly there are arms around me. Strong arms. Red and blue arms. _Peter._ I sob, right there in the middle of the jail cell turned bedroom from my crazy not-dead mother.  
The battle erupted around us, screams and curses. Clint is yelling at the Madam. Mj is screaming on the floor. She's on fire. My mother is on fire.  
I am on fire.  
Then the world spins and then the darkness reaches up and takes me away.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7  
Peter's Point of View  
It looks like everything should be fine. We won. Anna and Brenda are home. Are they safe? Are they okay? That's up for debate.  
Anna has powers, found her mother (whom she believed to be dead for the past twelve or so years) is alive and crazy. Then she saw Natasha, her sister or mother figure of the best ten years, shot and fall to the ground right before her eyes. Not to mention the whole, exploding into flames and then passing out thing. She's been out for a week. A week. Is it better to have her here? To have her by my side, trapped in a bed, making no noise.  
Can she hear me? I wish I knew. Is she okay? What is she seeing, is it better then here? Where we could all die at any moment?  
"Please wake up, Anna." I whisper before I leave her room for a bit.  
Anna Point of View  
Everything hurts. Every inch of my body, aches and the pain is enough to make me scream. I do, it only makes the hurt worse. I am cold too. So very cold. Alone. Am I alone?  
Where am I?  
"Peter?" I call, my throat is raw.  
"Anna? Can you open your eyes? Are you okay?"  
"It hurts Peter." I whimper, the pain is everywhere again, I scream again.  
"Anna," his voice is pained, it makes this so much worse "What hurts? Tell me please." He begs, I can feel him touching me. He's holding my hand; his hand is so cold.  
"Everything hurts. I'm so cold Peter." I whisper.  
"Anna, you have to stay with me okay? I'm going to grab Bruce okay? Anna?" he asks, the darkness is swooping around me again, taking me into its embrace. I sigh with relief. Momentary relief from the pain and the cold.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8  
Peter's Point of View  
I can't get it out of my head. Her scream.  
 _"Everything hurts. I'm so cold Peter."_ She didn't feel cold. In fact, she felt hot. Like she had a fever.  
"Bruce! I need you, Anna she's in pain- "  
"Where is she hurt?" he asks, as we walk through the halls.  
"She said it hurt everywhere. Bruce- "  
"Peter I'm going to need you to grab me Tony."  
"Is she- "  
"Peter! Get me Tony!' Bruce demands, as we walk into the room, where Anna is screaming. Her body is writing. Oh god.  
Bruce pushes me out of the room,  
"Go get Tony." He demands as he rushes in to check on Anna.  
What is going on.  
"Peter? What's going on?" asks Tony, as he comes up behind me.  
"Anna- "I start, but my words are drowning out by her screams. I want to rush into the room, to hold her tell her everything is okay. Tony turns to me, grave.  
"Go Peter. Grab Clint and Brenda, go do something." He says as he pushes me out into the hallway.  
I ran down the hall then. Trying to get as far away from her screams as I could.  
Anna's Point of view  
I was awake. I was awake and alone. These were my first coherent thoughts in over a week.  
As soon as I opened my eyes alarms began going off. Then I could hear footsteps. What was going on?  
"Anna! You're awake!" Peter yelled as he leaps onto my bed. Peter.  
"I- "  
"Peter, be careful." Brenda warns from the corner. Be careful? Peter doesn't hear her at least that's what it seems.  
"I'm so glad you're awake. I missed you." He says, as he kisses my forehead "I love you." He whispers. I smile, sometimes he's just too cute. It's really not fair.  
"Anna, how are you feeling?" Bruce asks from somewhere by my head, he's checking my vitals.  
"Fine. Hungry. And really cold." I say as I shiver. Bruce gives me a questioning look, but I don't take too much notice of it. Most of his looks don't mean anything.  
"I'll bet you've been out of it for a while." Peter says, as he pulls me close. His body is warm and far more angular than I remember.  
Clint sits on the foot of my bed, his hand over my foot.  
"So glad you're awake Rabbit, Nat wants to see you when you feel up to it." He says, as he kisses the top of my head. Even Steve and Tony are here with smiles and cheers.  
How long have I been out?  
"Uncle Peter! Uncle Peter!" call two little girls, their voices shrill. Rosie and Rosalinda? I thought that, they-  
"Who is this Uncle Peter?" asks one of them, with her short curly brown all over, as she climbs into his lap.  
"This, is Anna."  
"Like form Frozen?" asks the other one, who is blonde. Peter laughs  
"No, like Auntie Anna. The one I told you about? Do you guys remember?' he asks; they giggle as he tickles him.  
"Girls how about we leave Uncle Peter and Auntie Anna alone for a bit." Brenda says, as she gives pointed look to the others in the room. They all file out shortly, with Clint glancing at me again  
"How long- "  
"Two months." Peter says.  
"But the girls- "  
"Have grown faster due to the super-powered bits of Brenda and Steve's dna."  
"Well- "  
"Anna, can you just stop for a second? You've been gone for two months, three if you count the time with Hydra." I open my mouth to ask another question when he kisses me.  
"Well that's one way to keep me quiet." I say, he laughs, holding my face in his hands.  
"I have to ask you something." He says, I nod, not to sure where this is going. He nods as I watch him get off the bed, and grab something out of his pocket.  
"I've had this, for like ten years. Aunt May said I was supposed to give it the "special girl" I would find some day," he laughs "Anna, look we lead a crazy life. I know that. These past months have shown me that we have no idea how long we'll have. I want to spend whatever time I have left with you." He says as he drops to one knee, opening a small box, with small modest ring inside.  
"I know it's not much, but Anna Barton, will you marry me?" he asks.  
"Marry you?' I ask dumbly. His face falters,  
"Um yup that's the idea Anna."  
"You want to marry me?" I ask.  
"Um, yeah that's why I asked." He says, he's frowning now.  
"Um." I say, incapable of getting words to come out.  
"I kind of need an answer Anna." He says, as he tries to smile.  
"Oh! Right! Um, yes. Of course I'll marry you Peter." I say. He laughs  
"Wow way to take pity on a guy." He says as he slips the small ring on my finger. "So Mrs. Parker," he asks a small glint in his eye  
"Yes?"  
"How about I escort you to our room, help you get warmed up?" he asks, my face flushes. Oh.  
"That would be nice." I whisper as he whisks me off the bed, carrying me down the hall bridal style.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9  
 **Peter's Point of View**  
"I don't like this." I say, as Bruce leans over her, the needle in his fingers.  
"Neither do I Peter, but sometimes, it's not about what we want. Anna is in pain, and I can't figure out why. I have no idea what Hydra used on her. What they did to her. She's not exactly in any shape to tell us. This is for the best." He says, as he readies the needle.  
I look away.  
Please be okay Anna.  
 **Anna's Point of View**  
I'm awake. But in a hospital room. No. the medical wing of Avengers Tower, but why am I here? I already woke up. I thought Peter and I-. I stop that train of thought abruptly, feeling my cheeks heat up.  
This time though, I'm not alone. In fact, speak of the devil; Peter himself is asleep in the chair next to my bed. I lift my hand up to reach out to him, to wake him up, when I notice something.  
The ring isn't on my finger.  
The ring Peter gave to me, the engagement ring from his Aunt May. It's not there.  
"Peter! Wake up!" I hiss, as I reach over and shove his shoulder (given it's the only thing I could reach).  
He jolts awake, jumping up. He looks around the room as if waiting for someone to appear. Then he looks at me.  
"Anna? You're awake?" he asks as he sits on my bed.  
"Um, yeah."  
"Oh thank god. Um I'm going to-no Jarvis?" he intones as he runs his hands through his hair, looking at me curiously  
"Yes Mr. Parker?" asks the AI  
"Can you send the gang down here. Anna's awake." He says, as he looks at me again.  
 **Peter's point of view**  
It almost didn't seem real.  
She was awake.  
She was alive.  
But at what cost?  
I want to hold her; to tell her she is never allowed to leave my side ever again. I have so much to say to her. So many things. But for now I just look at her. Take her in. She's so beautiful. My little Pixie.  
"Peter? What's going on? I already woke up, there were the alarms and. "she says as she lets her words trail off. When Bruce sedated her.  
"Um, it wasn't real Anna."  
"What?"  
"I think maybe I should let Bruce explain." I say as Bruce walks into the room.  
"Anna, I see you're awake." He says as he sits at the foot of her bed, looking at her charts.  
"Bruce, what's going on? I don't understand." She says, as she looks from me to Bruce. He sighs, rubbing his eyes.  
"Well. Tell me, what do you remember?" he asks, she frowns  
"I remember being taken by Hydra. The whole the Madam-being-my-mom-thing. Then nothing. For a while. Then I woke up here, and I hurt so much. And then there was that time with Clint and Brenda. Something about Nat. Then I woke up. It all felt so real." She says, her eyes wide.  
"You've been out for two weeks." Bruce says, gently  
"What? I thought- "  
"We had to sedate you, it most likely caused the dream to seem real." He says,  
"Nat on the other hand, has been fully functional for about a week. Her and Clint are out of town for right now. I told them to take a break from this all." He gestures to me and the hospital bed.  
"what about Brenda? Is she okay?'  
"Yes, she's awake and with the girls right now." Peter says,  
"Well you two have a lot of catching up to do," he looks at Peter "I'll let you get to it." And with that he turns and leaves the room.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10  
 **Anna's point of view**  
We sit in silence for a moment, after Bruce leaves.  
"I missed you." Peter says, as he looks at me.  
"I love you." I reply, since it's kind of hard to miss someone when you think that you're with them. Not to mention being asleep. I can't help but notice the similarities between this reality and my dream. How Peter proposed. I decide instantly not to tell him about that, I'll let him decide if that's our path in due time. "How's your Aunt?" I ask, suddenly, surprising myself with the question. Peter sighs  
"I don't know, haven't been home for a while. I've lived in this chair for like the past three weeks" he says, I frown. While it _is_ touching that he sat by my bed this entire time, I also knew how much his Aunt meant to him.  
"You should go home. Take a shower, get some sleep." I say, _give me time to collect my thoughts. Figure out what the hell is happening with me._ He scowls,  
"You just woke up; you think I'm going to leave you already?' he asks  
"C'mon it's not like I'm going to be doing anything fun, I'm going to eat take nap. Being in a coma doesn't mean that I am exactly well rested. Besides May is probably worried about you." I say, silently urging him to go. He sighs  
"Aunt May would understand, one more night." He says, his face hopeful. _He wants me to tell him to stay._ I realize,  
"Peter- "  
"Well, this is a very _charged_ atmosphere." Says a voice, Peter looks up smiling. A boy, about our age emerges from the corner. He's tall and slender, with a small flop of dirty blonde hair, on an elegant face.  
"Anna, this is Harry, my friend Harry." He says as he clasps Harry's shoulder.  
"Um. Hi." I offer, as I shake his hand. Harry smiles  
"So nice to finally see you, and like talk to you. I mean, I've seen you before, being Red Hood and all, plus the whole, you've-been-in-a-coma-and-my-best-friend-has-lived-at-your-bedside-for-like-three-weeks. So obviously I've seen you before, so nice to talk to you." He says as he eagerly pumps my hand.  
"Thanks?" I say  
"Harry was just dropping by; he's got a date tonight." Peter says, Harry frowns. _He's trying to make him leave,_ I thought amused.  
"Oh, right. Yeah. A date. You know me, Harry-the-Player." He jokes "So nice to like, say hi and everything." He says as he waves and leaves the room hurriedly.  
"Do you usually usher your friends out of your girlfriend's hospital rooms?" I ask, he laughs  
"No, only for you babe." He says as he places a kiss on my cheek.  
"You know; you really should shower. At least talk to your Aunt. I'll be here when you get back." I say, he sighs  
"Aer you sure? Every time I turn around you're slipping through my fingers somehow." He teases, but I can tell, I can feel the underlying worry. I've put him through so much.  
"I promise, to be here when you get back." I vow, he smiles  
"Are Barton's any good at keeping promises?" he asks  
"We're better than Parkers." I tease he laughs and kisses me again before turning to leave.  
"I love you." He says,  
"I love you too, now hurry up Bug-Boy, you don't smell so good." I tease as he laughs again and leaves.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11  
 **Anna's point of view**  
Peter's gone for most of the day, and to be honest, I'm glad for it. It gives me time to think without him here to distract me. Things have changed so much, or at least that's what it feels like.  
A year ago, I was just a girl. A year ago, I had met Peter Parker. A year ago, my mother was still dead. A year ago, I was unhappy but not scared for my life. A year ago, none of this had happened.  
The past month, had seemed surreal. Like something that belonged in a book or a movie. None of this felt like my life anymore. A perfect boyfriend? An actual friend? Teen pregnancy? This was like some great coming-of-age novel or something.  
I sigh I need to get out of this room, I need to go do something.  
I decide to visit Brenda.  
It turns out, that Brenda has just awakened, so Bruce is bustling over her.  
"How do you feel?" he asks,  
'Crappy but that's normal." She says  
"Bruce she's right, I felt the same way when I woke up." I say, she looks up and smiles. I'm so glad that I've met Brenda, she's a bit tough (not as tough as me of course) but she's nice. Plus, she's my only friend.  
"Steve, I want to learn to control my powers and join the team if that's ok." Brenda says to Steve  
"What?" Peter exclaimed as he entered the room.  
Well this was going to be interesting.  
"Peter, you don't have a say in my life. I control my own fucking life. If I want to do this than I can." Brenda screams at him.  
The Parker siblings have been going at it, worse than Clint and I do. With screams (Brenda) cursing (Peter) and death threats (Brenda).  
"I just don't want to lose you. I couldn't live in this world without you." He says. Well, that was a little too romantic of a thing to say to your little sister.  
Brenda just sighs and rolls her eyes, "  
Peter you won't lose me. I can do whatever the fuck I want. Plus, I have Steve, and the others to protect me." She says, Peter, stubborn as he is, just turns and walks out of the room.  
"Um, I'll go talk to him. "I tell her as I hurry after him.  
"Thanks." She says, as she turns to Steve.  
"Peter! Peter! I- "I yell as I chase him down the hallway.  
I'm interrupted when he turns around and kisses me, right there in the middle of the hallway.  
"We need to talk." I mumble, he kisses me again  
"You sure you want to talk?" he asks  
"Um." I croak out, before he takes me by the hand, leading me into a room.  
"Are you sure this is- "  
"Tony made a room for each of you but not for me, guess that means we'll have to share." He says, as he flops onto the bed.  
Share? There's only one bed. My face flushes, but Peter doesn't seem to notice.  
"What? It's not like we haven't shared a bed before," he frowns "if it makes you uncomfortable I can sleep on the couch or I can go home." He says.  
"No! I want you to stay. Um it's just it was different before, we were in a hospital bed, and- "  
"Hey," he says interrupting me, "I would never make you do anything. You didn't want to do." He says, as he takes my hands.  
Sometimes he's just too sweet.  
"I know. It's just, um. You should take this costume off." I blurt. His eyes widen  
"What?"  
"The suit, I um, I don't think I can get it off by myself, I could use some help." I say my face as red as the suit. Peter blushes too, and we just stand there for a second.  
"How does it come off?" he asks, as he examines the back of the suit.  
"Um, I think that there's a zipper at the base of the neck." I say, as his fingers find it, his fingers brushing my neck. This is going to be difficult.  
I think we both try not to. Not to do anything. We both do. Try that is, very hard. But we fail.  
"That was," I pause thinking of the word to describe the experience.  
"Wow." He says, as he kisses me.I nod  
"I think wow is a great word."  
"I love you." He says, I smile  
"I love you too."  
"You know we should do that again sometime." He says, I laugh  
"Yeah, okay. We fit it in somewhere between saving the world and taking a shower."  
"We have a very big shower here." He jokes, I try very hard not to think about that mental image for too long.  
"You're a dork." I say  
"I know; you love my dorkiness. It's my most endearing quality." He says  
"I don't know, if it's your best quality, but its defiantly a big one." I tease. Then we fall into the teasing, and for the first time since I woke up, I'm glad that this is all real.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12  
 **Anna's point of view**  
I guess we really tempted fate. I mean, c'mon it was a bit stupid to sleep with my boyfriend, it Avengers Tower. Home to my brother and his girlfriend. Plus, there was always the off chance that someone would walk into my room.  
Someone knocks on the door, Peter freezes. Just freezes in the bed, his eyes wide. I grab a towel and run over to the door.I open it a tad, only to see Brenda staring back at me.  
"Can I come in?" she asks, Peter makes a noise from the bed, which I 'm not even sure if its human. What exactly do I say? No, you can't come in the room; your brother and I are naked because we just had sex. Come back later?  
"Um, sure." I say, as I step out of the way to let her in. Brenda isn't stupid, in fact she deuces what has happened from a quick look at Peter, who is laying under the sheets, looking extremely guilty.  
"Clint's back isn't he?" I asked, as I watched her face. She nodded.  
Great. Of course he is. After Brenda leaves the room, Peter and I scramble to find our clothes.  
"You should go." I say, as I push him towards the door.  
"What?" he says, as he pulls on his shirt.  
"You should go, so it isn't so obvious that we were- "  
"Oh! Right. I'll go." He kisses me quickly, and walks out the door to find Brenda.  
Well that was, interesting.  
I decide that I should take a shower, given that I haven't in nearly a month.  
After showering, (Peter was right the showers here are huge) I go back into my room, only to notice Peter left his sweater in here, and his shoes.  
I shake my head laughing when the room bursts open.  
I don't mean to scream, but I do anyways.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13  
 **Anna's point of view**  
"Where are you taking me?" I demand, as I flying through the air with one, raven-haired trickster god.  
"Where ever I want to take you." He says, as he scowls at me.  
"Hate to break it to you, but you're not Aladdin and this is not a magical carpet." I say, he just looks at me.  
As we land, in an old empty warehouse I decide to try something.  
"So don't you have like a girlfriend or something? Someone to occupy your time other than attacking my and family?" I ask, he turns to me frowning.  
"How do you know about Catherine?" he demands, as he leans into my face. My heart leaps into my throat, as I'm sure he's about to hit me when-  
He's jumped back and I'm covered in flames. Well this just got fun.  
I tower over him, ready to fry him extra crispy when  
"Please! Stop! Don't hurt him!" calls a girl as she rushes over to him.  
He really does have someone who cares about him.  
The girl looks up at me, her hair is green and dark, she even has a small lip piercing. Needless to say, she doesn't look like the type of girl I thought Loki would go after.  
"Fine. But you guys have to come with me."  
"Why would I ever you insolent little- "  
"Logan! Stop! We'll come with you," she says directing the last bit to me.  
Logan? What is going on?  
After an extremely awkward silence, we reach the Avengers Tower, only to find it nearly empty. The only person there is Brenda, who is watching the girls.  
She pulls me into a hug.  
"Thank god you're okay! I was so worried, Peter and them went out to find you- "she stops when she sees who's with me.  
"what is he doing here?" she demands, as her palms start to heat up.  
"It's fine! We're not going to hurt him. I promised."  
"But I didn't" she says as she launches a fireball at Loki. It sends Loki flying, and he lands on a car, wheezing and smoking.  
The girl, Catherine is screaming at Brenda and crying. Can I really blame her? I was her. Just a few months ago, when Peter- I stop pushing the memory away.  
"Brenda! Stop it! You can't do this! Okay? Think about your girls, do you want them to see you like this?" I ask as I step in front of Loki.  
At once she calms down, and sobs.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14  
 **Anna's Point of View**  
After getting Brenda to calm down, I tell JARVIS to alert the others that I'm back and that I have company,  
I lock Loki in a room, deciding that it's for the best, if it'll make Brenda stop from hurting him, well I'll do anything.  
Peter is the first back, and he scoops him into a hug.  
"You should really be more careful." He whispers into my hair. I make a face  
"Be careful? That doesn't sound very fun." I joke, trying to lighten the mood. Clint is the next in, followed by Nat. The two of them pull me into a hug, squeezing the air out of me.  
"Don't you- "Clint starts  
"We're just glad you're safe." Nat says.  
After that, the rest of the Avengers filter in. Steve goes to Brenda and gives her a small hug, as if reassuring himself that she's okay.  
"So, what trouble did you get yourself into this time, Princess?" Tony asks, as he finds himself a seat on the couch.  
"Well, I had an incident with Loki." I start watching Thor's reaction. It wasn't very pretty.  
"What? Where is the brother of mine? Is he here?" he demands, as he gets in my face. Peter jumps up, and pushes him off.  
"Watch Goldilocks, maybe you should keep an eye on your brother." Peter says. This only makes Thor angry,  
"Stop! Okay, look. Loki is here, but" I say stopping Thor before he can go find him. "I have an idea." I say, Bruce looks at me, cocking his head to the side,  
"What type of idea?" he asks.  
"Well, Loki has a girlfriend," I start, Tony raises an eyebrow  
"Reindeer Games, has a lady friend? I thought the crazy repelled girls." He remarks  
"I thought he was gay." Nat says simply. Clint laughs,  
"Anyways, I was thinking. How many times have we locked Loki up? How many times does he get away? Why not just keep him here? A rehab of sorts. Maybe a little freedom could do wonders for the guy?"  
"Why not just throw him into outer space and leave the portal closed?" Tony asks  
"Because, you didn't see the way he acted when I saw this girl, he freaked out. I think that he might be able to change, for her. It's not the first time someone here has changed because of someone else." I remark, giving Tony a pointed look.  
"Fine, fine. But how did he get here in the first place?" Tony asks,  
"That I don't know." I say  
"But I do," Brenda says, "Fury said he broke out of the Hellicarrier that was holding him. He took over the mind of the guard watching over him. Convinced him to let him out. Guess his first stop was here." She says.  
I watch her, to see if she's okay from the whole trying-to-Murder-Loki thing. But she's not looking at me and it's obvious that she ignoring me. Parkers. Can't live without them, sometimes you can't live with them either.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15  
 **Anna's Point of View**  
It's been a week. A week since I said, hey let's let Loki come live with us! It hasn't been too bad. A few people, (Brenda) are upset with me. But I guess I know that some people need second chances. Sometimes, people just make the wrong deskin. Maybe that's why I'm here.  
The Madam, no my mother doesn't look as polished as she did at Hydra. Her blond hair is limp and clumped together. She's wearing a plain grey outfit; her eyes are wide when she sees me.  
"Anna, dear. You're here. I- "stops herself  
"You're here to kill me aren't you?" she asks,  
"What? Kill you? God no! We're the good guys, we don't kill bad guys even if they deserve it." I say.  
"Then why are you here? To tell me what a bad mother I am?" she demands, she's angry now. Her face getting red, the same way Clint's does.  
"No, I-uh." Why did I come here? What was the point of coming? "Because I came to tell you, that I forgive you. For everything. For leaving us. For kidnapping me. For experimenting on me. I forgive you." I say, she scowls  
"Why would I want your forgiveness? I don't need it! You want me to be- "  
She rants on, but I turn around and walk away.  
I have a wedding to get to.  
"Where have you been? You're not even dressed yet!" Nat yelled at me, as she ushered me into the room.  
"I was doing stuff." I say, by way of explanation. She glares at me for a moment then stops.  
"Well c'mon! You've still got to get your hair done and- "  
"" Nat, deep breaths, you've got this." I say, as she sits down in a huff, her big white dress engulfing the couch.  
"I know, I just." She shakes her head, clearing away the thoughts.  
"So, you excited to be a Barton?" I ask, as I rummage around for my dress.  
"Well, as long as I have a maid of honor there." She says sternly.  
"Nat, everything is going to be fine. Okay?"  
She nods, but doesn't look entirely reassured. Not that I can blame her, I'm sure things could go wrong quite easily, but everyone has chipped in somehow to help with the wedding. As long as everything goes according to plan, well then I'll have a sister in law.  
 **Natasha's Point of View**  
It almost looks surreal. I watch as Brenda and Steve walk down the aisle, followed by Pepper and Tony, then finally, Anna and Peter.  
That's when the music starts,  
"You ready?" Bruce asks as he offers his arm.  
"As ready as I'll ever be." I say, as we enter the doors, and walk down the aisle.  
All I can see is Clint, standing in his suit, waiting for me.  
Then suddenly I'm there, right beside him, waiting for the priest to ramble on about a god we don't believe in. I miss the priest's words, too lost in the silent conversation between Clint and I when  
"Do you, Clint Francis Barton take Natasha Alianovna Romanoff, do be your lawful wedded wife?" he asks, Clint looks at me, and smiles.  
"I do."  
'Do you, Natasha Alianovna Romanoff take Clint Francis Barton as your lawfully wedded husband?" he asks  
"I do."  
"With the power invested in me by the state of New York, I pronounce you Man and Wife. You may kiss the bride." And with that, Clint kisses me, and I can't help but memorize every sensation, every laughs and squeal of joy. Because this is my life and I am finally living.  
"Ladies and Gentleman I introduce to you, for the first time ever, Mr., and Mrs. Barton!"


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16  
 **Anna's Point of View**  
Peter and I sat on the edge of the dance floor watching as Tony challenged Bruce to dance off.  
"You look beautiful." He whispers into my ear I smile  
"Well, you clean up very nicely." I say, he kisses me,  
"You know, we should do this." He says. I raise an eye brow  
"Do what?"  
"Get married." He says, nonchalantly.  
"Is that your idea of a proposal?" I ask, he shrugs  
"Depends on what your answer is." The joking tone is gone now; he looks me in the eye. This is it, this is him proposing? "We should do this."? Seriously? I can't help it, but I burst out laughing.  
"Why are you laughing?" he demands,  
"Because- "I try between giggles "It's just such you way to ask. We should get married. That's not even a question, that's a suggestion. Maybe we should go to Mars." I say he frowns at me.  
"I still need an answer."  
"Then ask me a question." He pouts,  
"Fine. Anna, will you marry me?" he asks, as he gets down on one knee.  
"Yes. I don't have a lot of other options here." I say gesturing around the room. He rolls his eyes,  
"Where is it?" I ask, as he gets up.  
"Where's what?" he asks, as he takes the seat next to mine again.  
"The ring. "I look at him, at how his face pales "You proposed to me without a ring?" I demand, raising my voice a tad. Harry looks over at us, his eyes wide.  
"Anna- "  
"You asked me to marry you, and you didn't even get a ring?" I hiss,  
"I-uh. Well I was going to but I- "he stemmed looking hopeless. I laughed and kissed him.  
"Just don't forget the rings at the wedding." I whisper.  
"Sure thing Mrs. Parker." I make a face  
"Don't call me that yet, I'm a Barton for a bit still."  
"We could go do this right here right now and change that." He says smiling.  
"Yeah, no. "I say  
"Can I at least get this dance?" he asks as a new song comes on. I don't' recognize it, but I shake my head, why not?  
"I guess; I'll do you the honor of having this dance with me." I say, as he laughs and pulls me out onto the dance floor.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17  
 **Anna's Point of View**  
"Auntie Anna! Uncle Peter! Mommy and Daddy said we get to spend time with you!" scream the two little Rogers girls as they jump on us in the bed. I moan,  
"Come play with us! Uncle Peter!" Rosie squeals as she pulls on his arm. Rosalinda cuddles up next to me, placing her small face right next to mine.  
"Auntie Anna, I wanna watch a movie." She says as Peter finally gets up and picks up a squealing Rosie.  
"What movie?" I ask, as I sit up, wondering why on Earth Brenda and Steve left us on baby-sitting duty.  
"Frozen?" she pleads as she places her two little hands together, it's just too cute.  
"Of course." I say as she squeals  
"Yay! Frozen!" she runs out of the room.  
Today is going to be wonderful.  
Baby-siting the twins isn't as bad as I thought it would be, and once I figure out why I guess it's understandable.  
Brenda and Steve had to go do wedding planning stuff. Which makes me queasy, thinking that one day (rather soon) Peter and I will have to go through all that. Burgh.  
Peter and I have just put the girls down for a nap when I hear shouting.  
"Sue. What happened?" Brenda is asking Sue, as Sue sobs into her hands.  
"Sue you can trust us. We are very close to Steve. Is he alright?" I asked. Brenda was growing worried, and I was a bit too. Steve and I were close. We were friends.  
"Steve is fine, just has a broken leg, and..." She stops to cry. "He was knocked unconscious. He fell and hit his head on a rock. I couldn't protect him with my force field like I did for you Brenda. I'm sorry." She said and ran out of the room.  
"Daddy's hurt." It was Rosalinda. She heard everything. Before Brenda could answer her, she took off running to her room.  
"Where is Peter?" she asked me.  
"Laying down, he's not feeling too well." I say  
"Can I see him?" she asks, I shrug and lead her to my (new) room. Where peter is laying on the bed.  
"Peter, are you all right?" she asked. He didn't look to good, his face was all pale and his nose was bright red, whatever he had hit him hard.  
"Not feeling well. I should warn you though, Aunt May is coming to visit." He said.  
Brenda then passed out, and I hauled her to her room, deciding that it was best for her to sleep for a bit.  
A bit later, Aunt May came by.  
"Ms. Barton, there is a woman here, of the name May Parker, she was summoned by Mr. Parker, shall I send her up?" asks JARVIS, after Inudge Peter awake  
"Yeah send her up." I say to the AI as I wait for the uncomfortable to unroll.  
"Did you tell May- "  
"Nope." He says as he sits up.  
"Maybe we should go meet her, help break the news a bit easier."  
"Yeah sure." He says as we walk into the hallway.  
"Peter? Anna? What are you two doing here? What's going on? I don't understand." She says when she sees us. Then she notices the ring on my finger.  
"Oh! You two got engaged. I'm so glad, I always liked you more than Mary-Jane." She says as she pulls me in for a took that well.  
"Aunt May,"  
"Yes Peter?"  
"I've got to tell you something, and you can't freak out at me okay?'she frowns but nods  
"First off, I'm Spider-Man." He says, as watches her reaction, which is nonexistent.  
"Oh please Peter, did you really think that I didn't know? I've lived with you since you were a little boy, I know everything about you. I knew the whole time I knew." She says, Peter pales  
"You knew? The entire time and you never said anything?' he asks  
"I figured you would tell me when you were ready." She says, Peter just shakes his head.  
"So, I know you don't like talking about her, but I've been thinking a lot about Brenda lately." Her expression immediately sours.  
"I don't want to talk about that Peter." She says, her lips tight.  
"Aunt May- "  
"No! I will not talk about that poor girl! I don't want to! You will not force this on me Peter!" she yells when Brenda bursts into the room  
"Hey Back off!" she yelled. May l looked at her and her face just paled. Peter's face paled as well.  
"You have no right coming into my house and yelling at your nephew, when you raised him and left me with some rotten family that never told me who my real family was. Now I suggest you calm down, or you will wake your great nieces from their nap." She screams at May, who only scowls.  
Well this just got fun didn't it.


	18. Chapter 18

h2Chapter 18/h2  
div id="chapter"strongAnna's Point of View/strongbr /After Aunt May left, Brenda sent the girls to their rooms to play and left Steve to heal up. Peter went back to bed, claiming he had a /"Hey Brenda, how are things going with the wedding? Anything I could do to help?" I ask, she sighsbr /"Yes, I need help with decorations. Oh! I need you to try one your dress, so I can make sure it fits and all." She says,br /"Well I'm happy to help in any way I can, given that I'm the Maid of Honor." I say, then I pausebr /"But you know what? We should go do something fun. Something completely normal and non-wedding related." I say. She looks up, smilingbr /"Really?" she asksbr /"Yeah why not? The wedding can wait a few hours." I saybr /"Fine. But you have to change, there is no way I am going anywhere with you looking like that." She teases as she looks me up and /I guess I can't really blame her; I don't exactly look my /My hair is a mess, I'm wearing one of Peter's shirts, which is too big for me and the oldest, holiest pair of pants I /"I don't exactly have a lot of clothes here. Besides someone stuck me on baby-sitting duty." I saybr /"I don't' have a lot of clothes here either and I don't look like you do." She saysbr /"Ms. Parker, Ms. Barton we have an intruder in the living room." JARVIS alerts us. We both freeze. Seriously? Again?br /I walk into the living room only to see a man, only a bit older than Clint, standing there looking entirely /"Wow Rabbit you grew up so fast." The man says. He called me Rabbit, the only person who called me that besides Clint wasbr /"Barney?"/div 


	19. Chapter 19

**Anna's Point of View  
** Brenda looks at me, confused.  
"Anna who is this guy?" she asks as she looks from me to him.  
"He's my big brother- "I start  
"Barney Barton at your service." He says with a flourish.  
Why does the universe hate me so much?  
"What. The. Hell. Are. You. Doing. Here?" Clint demands, each words more venomous than the one before it. Nat puts a hand on his arm, to calm him down.  
We've all gathered in the living room, and everyone is staring daggers at Barney.  
"Well I heard that my little Moose and Rabbit were all grown up. Getting married. I had to see for myself if it was true." He says, his voice thick with the southern accent. The one Clint and I had fought to hide for so long.  
"Where were you all this time?" I ask, resentment dripping off my words. He smiles,  
"Oh, I've been everywhere. Russia, France, Europe. Even went to see the penguins." He says, as if this should impress us.  
"So you decide that after twelve years, you should just show up unannounced and think that we would actually want to see you?" I demand, my voice rising with each word. He smiles again, and looks me dead in the eye.  
"Don't start that bullshit with me Anna. When Mom and Dad died, I was fifteen. What could I do? I could barely take care of myself, let alone my ten-year old brother and five year old little sister." He says, as if that's okay. AS if that makes it a right.  
"You left us! You could have stayed! But you left us! You left us without a backward glance! Nothing for twelve years Barney! You were never there when we needed you! When we missed you! You can't come here and expect us to give you a hug and talk about the football game! You left us!" I leave the room before I start crying.  
Peter follows me out,  
"Anna are you okay?" he asks, I laugh humorlessly  
"With what Peter? With my mother coming back from the dead? My brother showing up after nothing, for twelve years? What part am I supposed to be okay with? I don't even know if I'm capable of being okay! I'm in-okay-able!' I rant. He just raises and eyebrow  
"In-okay-able?" he asks,  
"Not my best work." I say, he pulls me to him  
"Not even top ten." He says  
"Anna, a lot of things have happened this year. But we made it through all the craziness. We can make it through this too. Besides, maybe he's not even your brother. He actually likes me. Barton's seem to hate me on sight." He jokes,  
"It just took a bit of time for you to grow on me."  
"Like a flower?"  
"Like a flower? What? No. Peter, you grew on me like a flower. Nobody says that! Besides, it was more like a fungus." I tease.  
"Gee Pix, way to tell me how you really feel."  
"I'm just keeping it real." I say.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

I can't believe its here. Today is the day, that my best friend gets married to my other best friend. Its funny, that I'm nervous. I guess. Brenda looks up at me, her blonde hair arranged around her head, hiding under her white veil.  
"Are you ready?" she asks, as she checks my dress, and then my hair.  
"Yeah. Are you?" i ask, she nods.  
"I'm just, trying to think about it all." she says, as she gets me and Mack into line. Then the music plays and the girls file out.  
After Mack goes, I peek back at Brenda and she smiles, sadly? Nervously? Happily? But she's beautiful and nervous and human.  
It's a beautiful moment.  
Then they're both there standing at the altar. The priest looks at the two of them and begins.  
"Do you, Steve Alexander Rodgers take Brenda Rose Parker to be your loftily wedded wife?" he asked Steve.  
"I Do," Brenda smiled  
"And do you Brenda Rose Parker take Steve Alexander Rodgers to be your loftily wedded husband?"  
"I Do."  
"Then with the power vested in me by the state of New York, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." and with that they kissed.

~~~~~Fin~~~~~

 **Be sure to check out the final book "Then it bursts into flames" Up soon!**

 **-Anna**


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